Braised Baby Artichokes With Capers & Garlic

I was so excited this week – I got the BEST package in the mail. Food! Of course as a dietitian and food blogger, I’d get excited about food. But when it’s the most beautiful baby artichokes you’ve ever seen…you’d get excited too. Melissa’s really outdid themselves this time!

Baby artichokes are small, tender artichokes that typically don’t have that fuzzy prickly choke in the center. So much easier to clean and eat! When cooked they’re tender and full of flavor – and just as Melissa’s says online, they’re great braised (like my recipe below!), quick fried or even tossed in with risotto! Might have to swap them into my delicious Oat Risotto! Now that’d be delicious!

But, I went with a braised recipe instead. I like that there’s some delicious liquid left in the pan that’s just asking for a crusty piece of Italian bread. Garlicky, lemony, sauce with capers all swirled around tender little artichokes. So good! The perfect quick and light dinner or a nice appetizer to share at a party! But definitely have some bread on the side!!

Fill a large bowl with cold water and juice 1 lemon into the water – leave lemon halves in the water as well. You will place the cut and trimmed artichokes in this lemon (acidulous) water to help them prevent browning while you prep for the recipe.

To clean the baby artichokes, start by trimming the stem so that any hard or browned parts are removed. Then remove all the browned and dry outer leaves – you may remove up to 3 0r 4 rows of those outer leaves. This will leave you with a tender artichoke when they are cooked. Peel the stem and parts of the remove leaves so that are hard and tough parts are completely gone. Lastly, remove about 1-2″ of the tops of the artichokes – the tips are typically tough. Depending on the size, I usually remove about the top 1/3 of the artichoke leaves.

Slice all the artichokes in half (scoop out any fuzz on the inside if there is any) and place them in the lemon water.

While artichokes are hanging out in the lemon water, heat up the olive oil in a large braising pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add minced onions and sauté for about 5-7 minutes or until beginning to turn translucent.

Add in garlic cloves, capers, salt and pepper. Saute for another 1-2 minutes or until garlic is fragrant. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the pan.

Drain the artichokes well and add to the pan. Pour in the vegetable stock until it reaches half way up the artichoke halves. Bring artichoke mixture to a simmer, and then cover. Reduce heat to medium and cook for about 20-25 minutes ensuring to check half way through to ensure enough liquid remains in the pain – if needed added a splash or two of vegetable stock.

Artichokes will be done when they are knife tender. Before serving, add in the juice of the remaining lemon, parsley and butter. Stir to combine and serve hot with an extra drizzle of olive oil and crusty bread for dipping!

The ingredients in this post were provided free of charge from Melissa’s. Recipe created and developed by BeanAFoodie. I did not receive any kickbacks or payments from featuring Melissa’s in this post – just got to cook with delicious produce!